Car bomb leaves dozens dead in Iraq's Sadr City

Jan 02, 2017, 5:05 AM EST

(Source: Aaron Keene/flickr)

A deadly car bomb attack at a busy square in Baghdad’s Sadr City district killed at least 33 people and injured 48 others on Monday. The assault, yet not claimed by any militant group, comes two days after 29 people died in three bomb blasts across the Iraqi capital on Saturday.

The suspicion falls on the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (I.S.I.L., also known as I.S.I.S.) group, which has stepped up its retaliatory strikes as it faces huge pressure from US-backed Iraqi forces in Mosul, its last major stronghold in the country, reports Al Jazeera.

The strike comes as French President Francois Hollande, currently visiting Iraq, is set to discuss the anti-IS fight with senior Iraqi officials, reports the BBC. Earlier, addressing the French soldiers deployed in Iraq, Hollande said their work against the jihadist group helps combat terrorism at home.